Beverley and Holderness MP, Graham Stuart, says his new CADEY (Community Access Defibrillators for East Yorkshire) campaign will address the patchy coverage of these potentially life-saving machines. CADEY brings together local fundraisers, charities and the Yorkshire Ambulance Service to drive a more comprehensive strategy towards defibrillators.
Graham was speaking ahead of the second meeting of the CADEY committee, which will be responsible for encouraging fundraising, improving coverage and increasing awareness of where heart defibrillators are and how to use them.
Graham has been a long-standing supporter of better defibrillator coverage, given that evidence shows a patient’s chance of survival drops by up to 10% for every minute that defibrillation is delayed.
The campaigning MP previously cycled around the constituency in order to raise awareness of defibrillators and held a conference in October 2017 to highlight areas for local improvement. Ultimately, Graham wants to see East Yorkshire have the highest cardiac arrest survival rate in the UK, and become a template for the rest of the country to follow in every step of the chain of survival.
Graham said: “With the help of the Yorkshire Ambulance Service, I’ve identified 60 communities across Beverley and Holderness that still do not have a publicly-accessible defibrillator registered with the emergency services.
“These black spots are the top priority of the CADEY campaign, which I have launched to give residents a better chance of surviving from sudden cardiac arrests. If we can achieve full coverage, we are well on the way to making East Yorkshire an example for the rest of the country to follow.
“Residents can play their own part by letting my office know if their area is not covered by a defibrillator – a full list of which can be accessed via my website.”
